


Fuck Charisma

by Kariachi



Category: Ben 10 Series
Genre: Alternate Universe - Daemons, Gen, Trans Character, closer to part of 'the plumber's spawn collective', not in any way related to souls & switches
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-11
Updated: 2019-07-11
Packaged: 2020-06-26 14:38:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 878
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19770298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kariachi/pseuds/Kariachi
Summary: Thoughts on the shapes daemons settle on, from the pov of one Kevin Levin and his Annelie.





	Fuck Charisma

Kevin and Annelie never really understood the common desire to settle as charismatic megafauna. Oh, they could understand why the forms could be useful, they used them themselves when they felt threatened or wanted to intimidate people into leaving them alone, but, why people would want to stay that way? No idea. They were a bitch to travel with and house, you were constantly stared at, and it was so statistically unlikely it was almost laughable. After all, it was already a well known fact that dog shapes were the most common (their cousin JJ had told him once, while they watched their Thomas and Annelie try out crow shapes, that it was because they two species were so similar) and that after that was arthropods (probably because there were so damn many types). And even if you did fit most of the marks to end up a tiger or something, you were more likely to really be, say, a wildcat person.

Besides, the kids they’d met who were most insistent about how awesome megafauna were and how they were the ‘best’ shapes were also the most likely to need to get punched. For being bullies, for insulting ‘pest’ daemons, and once because Mike hadn’t yet (and never had) figured out how to do it without accidentally biting himself. They were always, _always_ , such absolute _jerks_ about it, and for _no reason_.

‘Lesser’ daemons were awesome! They made up the majority of their family, and despite everything they still _loved_ the majority of their family! Common birds, smaller canines, arthropods, livestock, fish, small felids, they were all totally cool and _how_ could anyone think otherwise? The biggest daemons in the family were their cousin Solomon’s Adina- a sambar deer- and Mama Idoya’s Severo- a puma- and if they were quite honest neither one was as badass as their mom’s hummingbird Rufus. And again, they were a bitch to travel with and garnered stares wherever they went. A complete hassle that, say, their brother Cody, didn’t need to deal with. Nobody looked twice at the chicken on his shoulder, and she could fit damn near anywhere. Practical, nondescript, and yet still classy. You couldn’t ask for more in a daemon, and honestly most didn’t have to.

And you know, all that had been weird enough. Classmates strutting around with their daemons in wolf shape like they could make them settle that way through sheer willpower, getting teased because Annie’d decided she wanted to be a raccoon that day, sitting though presentation after presentation after after-school-special about how settling really works and how no shape was better than any other. Years of ‘Levin’s gonna be a vulture/rat/mutt’ used as _insult_ , like they didn’t have those very things in their family. Mama Holly’s Joseph, Alex’s Sissy, Cousin Tony’s Cindy, and more besides.

Then they’d hit puberty, and somehow things got _weirder_ and _more_ annoying. Thankfully they’d been in space by then, where nobody could really judge their shape, their identity, anything but their behavior- and even that they could get some leeway with by playing the ‘raised on a backwoods mudball’ card. The only ones who would even think to make guesses were Argit and Susi, and they only knew as much of their options as they’d been told. Plus, Susi was megafauna themselves and neither of them was wishing the hassle on anyone. But when they’d come back to Earth, the other two trailing behind like they weren’t coming of their own free will, it was entirely different.

Annelie had settled by then- a sleek, golden-red mongoose that had Cousin Val and Liron beaming for weeks- but people outside the family were always so _surprised_. They’d see how Kevin had shot up like a tree, built up that solid Osmosian and Jones build with the heavy muscle and broad shoulders (more than big enough for the human side- all their cousins, uncles and aunts staring at how the baby of the family was eye-to-eye with the largest of them- but small enough for all their parents and half-siblings to look down at him and tut, muttering about time on the streets stunting him, which wasn’t exactly wrong) and immediately chatter would begin about how strange, someone so _big_ having a daemon so _small_. And she wasn’t, really. Three foot long was nothing to sneer at, and anyway she draped over his shoulders perfectly. But no. Big? Intimidating? Scarred? A criminal? He should clearly have a wolf, a tiger, a hawk, or at least a cobra. Because they were big and intimidating and just

Sometimes he wanted to pull out a picture of Cousin Waylon- who made him look like a _shrimp_ \- and his oscar-shaped Adalyn. Show them just how accurate that bullshit was. Then Annelie would be whispering in his ear, helping him keep his temper, stay polite, and if they kept it up she’d handle it.

And hoo-boy did she handle shit. Rikki-tikki-tavi had _nothing_ on his girl.

People generally didn’t ask why she wasn’t a wolf afterwards.

And that was sort’ve their whole point, wasn’t it? Charismatic megafauna were big, and cool, and popular, but in the end you didn’t have a choice in the matter, and anyway

 _Every_ shape thy'd seen so far was awesome.

**Author's Note:**

> Identifiable Daemons Introduced Include
> 
> Kevin Levin-Jones- Annelie ([Egyptian Mongoose](http://gjsmsvirtualzoo.pbworks.com/f/Egyptian-mongoose-hunting-a-snake.jpg))


End file.
